13.28 National Centre for Recognition and Development of Skills Recognition and development of employable vocational skills has been a relatively neglected area in higher education. A small beginning was made at IGNOU through an initiative in recognition of prior learning in masonry skills and that of construction workers in the Indian army so as to enable and certify their further training. In order to provide a focused impetus to identification, recognition and certification of vocational skills as well as for accreditation of experiential learning, it is proposed to set up a National Centre for Recognition of Skills. The centre will spearhead and coordinate efforts in the ODL system to identify priorities in skills development in response to the national requirements in various sectors, generate mechanisms to accredit experiential learning in these domains, and offer programmes for development and certification of these skills.
